Peconic River County Park

Directions:

Take the Long Island Expressway to exit 71; turn right onto County Route 24; drive 1.2 miles and turn left onto Pinehurst Boulevard; at the end of the road turn right onto South River Road; park at the end of the road. 

PECONIC RIVER HEADWATERS UPLANDS

October, 1991 newsletter NYFA

Eighteen members of NYFA met in Riverhead, N Y on September 22 for a hike through several exemplary Long Island plant communities. The weather was sunny and warm. The first stop was the pine barrens and associated ponds in the headwaters of the Peconic River. We walked through the woods from Route 25 to the northern end of Peasy's Pond and then walked through Peasy's as far as Sandy Pond. The water level was nearly at its highest with only a small area of exposed margin. Although many of the species seen during low water years were not present, we recorded many bladderwort species and 14 species that are listed as rare in New York by the New York Natural Heritage Program.

The second stop was along the southeast side of Hubbard Creek Marsh in Flanders to visit one of Long Island's best salt marshes. Phragmites occurs only locally at this site which has both high productivity stands of low marsh cordgrass and large patches of high-salinity upper marsh.

The final stop was at the Dwarf pine barrens in the area southwest of Interchange 63 on the Sunrise Highway. We walked a old cinder road into a characteristic site with stunted pitch pine.

Base species lists were compiled from Heritage work over several years. The followings lists were made from additions by Betty Lotowycy, Barbara Conolly, Chris Mangels, Steve Clements, and David Hunt.

PLANT  LIST:

Trees:
Acer rubrum
Betula populifolia
Pinus rigida
Prunus serotina
Quercus alba
Quercus coccinea
Quercus prinoides
Quercus velutina
Sassafras albidum

Shrubs:
Amelanchier canadensis
Amelanchier arborea var. laevis
Aronia melanocarpa
Aronia prunifolia
Chamaedaphne calyculata
Clethra alnifolia
Comptonia peregrina
Gaultheria procumbens
Gaylussacia baccata
Gaylussacia frondosa
Ilex glabra
Kalmia angustifolia
Leucothoe racemosa
Lyonia mariana
Lyonia ligustrina
Myrica gale
Myrica pensylvanica
Quercus ilicifolia
Rubus flagellaris
Rubus hispidus
Salix bebbiana
Spiraea alba var. latifolia
Spiraea tomentosa
Vaccinium pallidum
Viburnum cassinoides

Vines:
Smilax glauca
Smilax rotundifolia
Toxicodendron radicans

Herbs:
Achillea millefolium
Ambrosia artemisiifolia
Aralia nudicaulis
Centaurea maculosa
Chamaecrista nictitans
Conyza canadensis var. pusilla
Cypripedium acaule
Daucus carota
Diodia teres
Erechtites hieraciifolia
Eupatorium hyssopifolium
Euphorbia cyparssias
Euthamia graminifolia
Euthamia tenuifolia
Galium mollugo
Gnaphalium obtusifolium
Helianthemum canadense
Hypericum gentianoides
Hypericum dissimulatum
Hypericum canadense
Lechea maritima
Lechea villosa
Lechea racemulosa
Leucanthemum vulgare
Mollugo verticillata
Monotropa uniflora
Plantago aristata
Polygonella articulata
Polygonum arenastrum
Solidago puberula

Rushes:
Juncus dichotomus
Juncus tenuis

Sedges:
Carex pensylvanica
Cyperus dentatus
Rhynchospora capitellata

Grasses:
Agrostis perennans
Aristida dichotoma
Cenchrus longispinus
Eragrostis spectabilis
Eragrostis pectinacea
Panicum acuminatum
Panicum depauperatum
Panicum dichotomiflorum
Panicum dichotomum
Panicum linearifolium
Panicum oligosanthes
Poa compressa
Schizachyrium scoparium
Tridens flavus

Ferns:
Dennstaedtia punctilobula
Deschampsia flexuosa
Digitaria sanguinalis
Digitaria ischaemum
Osmunda cinnamomea
Osmunda regalis
Pteridium aquilinum
Thelypteris palustris

Fanwort (Cabomba caroliniana) found here.

Source:  Guy Tudor.  Now You See It, Now You Don't: A selected list of New York and New Jersey wildflowers and flowerings shrubs not covered in the standard regional guides. The Linnaean News Letter. Volume 59, Number 3, May 2005.